Neural Circuits for Nociception and Pain

​University College London

Hundreds of thousands of nerve endings lie under our skin, sending sensory information to the central nervous system about environmental stimuli. These sensory neurons and their downstream neural circuits allow you to feel a gentle breeze or the touch of a loved one; they protect you from harmful stimuli - if you accidentally step on a nail or touch a hot pan.

Our lab studies how these neural circuits operate. How do these circuits guide protective responses so that they are rapid yet appropriate? How are they transformed in disease and become non-protective?

We use optogenetics, optochemical genetics, electrophysiology, multiphoton microscopy and other state-of-the-art techniques to address these questions.

News

October 2018: Jonathan joins the lab from UCSD for his MSc project - welcome!September 2018: Flora returns to start her MSci project in the labAugust 2018: Elisa joins the lab for her PhD funded by the BBSRC - welcome!July 2018: Ara attends FENS in BerlinMay 2018: Hugo joins the lab as a PhD rotation student funded by the Wellcome TrustFebruary 2018: Flora is accepted into the Janelia Undergraduate Scholars Program - congratulations!February 2018: Karina joins the lab as a PhD rotation student funded by the MRCOctober 2017: Liam speaks at Oxford's Sherrington SocietyJuly 2017: Paper published in Cell Reports revealing the complexity of fast protective behaviors (also see PRF coverage)June 2017: Flora and George join the lab as summer studentsMay 2017: Liam attends the first Meeting of Minds Conference at the Royal SocietySeptember 2016: Liam talks at IASP in JapanSeptember 2016: Ara joins the lab from ParisJuly 2016: Liam invited to reception at Buckingham Palace​June 2016: Lab opens